Running Up That Hill
by MysticNightFall
Summary: After having to take Stefans place to protect Elena; Damon and Elena make a run from Mystic Falls as Klaus and Elijah close in. Crazy things can happen in the unknown, some of which can cause to people to be drawn together.


**Title: **Running up that hill

**Warnings: **Violence, bad language, lots of running.

**Summary: **After having to take Stefans place to protect Elena; Damon and Elena make a run from Mystic Falls as Klaus and Elijah close in. Crazy things can happen in the unknown, some of which can cause to people to be drawn together.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned the Vampire Diaries it would be never ending!

**Author's note: **I have never written fan fiction for the Vampire Diaries before so be gentle with me. I only actually started watching the show about 2 weeks ago. I brought the box set after watching the first episode and now I'm dying for America to release their next episode in season two before I explode (I'm from the UK and we're go far behind I swear!). So I thought this would be a good way to release my tension.

The story takes place at the end of 'Rose' – after Damon tells Elena he loves her Stefan drags Elena over to the Salvatore house after talking to Rose and this is where it starts. I hope you enjoy!

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**Chapter 1**

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The Salvatore house stood as a huge black shadow within the darkness of the night as it washed over Mystic Falls. No lights could be seen through the old, thickly drawn curtains and no sounds could be heard. To anyone it would look as if no one was home.

Damon Salvatore refilled his whisky glass to the brim and took a large sip. He sighed in a way a normal human would as they enjoyed the burning sensation trickle down their throat. Though, of course Damon had not felt that for a while. He turned, his ice blue eyes flittering over the scene in front of him as his Brother huddled close to the girl of their affections.

Rose was pacing close by also cradling a glass of whiskey however its size was considerately smaller than Damon's.

"You need to get out of town," she spoke as she walked, distress clearly rippling through her body. "You really don't know what you're up against. They will hunt you down and continue to do so until they have her in their grasp."

"I won't let them," Stefan spoke up his voice dark with menace. Elena shifted closer to her boyfriend wanting to feel his power and protection. She felt the mood in the room change. She raised her large dark eyes to see Rose. The older vampire stuck to the spot and turned her serious gaze to Stephen.

"Little boy," she spoke and Elena knew that to her that was he was. He could never match her wise ways she was over 500 years older than him. "You don't even know the things they can do."

"They don't know the things we can do," Damon added with an amused lift of his eyebrow. A slow smirk dragged itself onto his face as he sauntered towards them. "I just killed their precious little bitch –"

"Damon, these are very old vampires – they can do things you can't even imagine."

"What? Like speak Viking?"

"Damon – please - take this seriously for once," Elena spoke turning to him. "Too many lives are at stake."

"You both need to run," Rose insisted

"What like you did for 500 years?" Stefan snarled in disgust. "We can't, I will not let it come to that."

"Well you might as well dig your graves and lie in them because as soon as Klaus gets here she's dead."

"Where would we go?"

"Run south, into the deserts."

"The deserts?" Elena spoke confusion crossing her face. "Surely that would be the worst place for -"

"Exactly," Rose smiled slightly the corners of her mouth lifting "Trevor and I – we used to hide out in the caves down there. It's the safest place I've ever felt."

"And while you're there we can take out Klaus and his minions," Damon grinned his eyes twinkling sadistically at the thought. Rubbing his hands together he announced, "Easy."

"I don't think this is a good idea," Stefan murmured his eyes wondering down to his lap where he held Elena's hands within his. Something could so easily go wrong, and he couldn't risk losing Elena or his Brother even after everything.

"Well we're running out of time Brother," Damon drawled as he took a quick sip of his drink. He wondered over to one of the large covered windows and pulled the curtain back slightly to take a look outside. "Like it or not Klaus is on his way here."

"Stephen –" Elena all but whispered. She raised her gaze to his and looked into the face of the man she loved to the depths of her soul. "It's the only way. Until Klaus is dead I will not be able to live a normal life in Mystic Falls. I cannot lead him to Jeremy and Jenna. I can't put them in danger."

It was a while before Stefan responded, slowly his brows creased and he silently nodded his head in agreement, "We leave tomorrow at dawn."

"Or now might be a good idea," Damon suddenly growled causing the two's head to snap in his direction. "He's not dead." He watched as the warrior Original marched his way across the garden his skin shining almost silver in the moon light.

"Elijah." Rose's voice stated in panic as she took a glance over Damon shoulder. Elena felt a shiver run through her body.

"We have to get Elena out of here." Stefan was up and out of his seat within a second pulling Elena along with him. However as they reached the front door they were only greeted by the sad sadistic vampire they thought they'd killed only hours before.

However to their surprise he pushed Elena out of the way and grabbed for the throat of Stephen, lifting him high into the air with ease.

"You really think you can mess with me," the old vampire murmured his voice sounding slightly weaker than when they last saw him.

"If it has anything to do with her," Damon replied instead and smashed a glass bottle full of whisky over the warriors head. The vampire went down with a thump.

"Get Ele –" Damon couldn't finish his sentence as he was knocked across the room and into a book shelve. The books tumbled over him like a waterfall. Stefan growled with anger his eyes turning a darker shade as he wished for revenge. He ran at the old vampire and gored him to the floor.

Rose in the mean time grabbed a stake. She held it in her hand for a moment thinking of the last 500 years she had been running from this man, the fear and isolation she felt was crippling. But then she thought of Trevor and her grip around the small piece of wood tightened. She ran towards the scene as Stephen was thrown off the warrior with a growl sending him crashing into some tables behind.

Elena rose to her feet, anger seeping through her veins at the man who wanted to spill her blood. She hated him, she hated all of them who just wouldn't leave her be. She watched in horror as Stefan and Rose battled with the old vampire. However, she could see the look her love threw Damon and the plead it held with it. Take her – run with her.

"Stefan NO!" Elena all but had time to yell before a black blur rushed her way, picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder. The last thing she saw was Elijah turn to rush after them but Rose and Stefan taking him down. "Stefan!"

Everything seemed to be happening so fast. She watched as the Salvatore house disappeared into the distance and then she was sat in Damon's car. It was running and half way out of town before she could speak.

"We have to turn back!" She cried, trying to unbuckle her seat belt.

"If we go back you'd be putting a load more people in danger than just Stephen."

"Damon – take me back."

"No." She huffed in her seat her eyes almost watering.

"He could die."

"Hate to break it to you Princess but he's dead anyway. Besides, he was planning to run after you and I got away."

"You can tell that from just one look?"

"We have been brothers for over 156 years." Damon smirked his cold eyes flickering towards the girl sat in the seat next to him. Just hours before he'd told her he'd loved her but then wiped her memory. How he wished he was the one who she wanted to run away with at the moment. He watched as her hands fussed with the ends of her long sleeved jumper. "You should put your seat belt back on."

She sighed in frustration but did what she was told.

"So he will meet up with us?" she asked in hope. She felt like half of herself was missing when Stefan wasn't around. And just the thought of him dying for her made her feel sick.

"Yes," Damon sighed in irritation as he continued to drive his fastest.

They were out of town by dawn. Elena felt like she couldn't sleep an inch until she found out if Stephen was ok. He had to be.

Her phone rang as they pulled to a stop outside a petrol station. She instantly answered it.

"Stephen?" She said as she got out the car and Damon went to refuel. Her body felt stiff and she could now feel the bruises that had begun to form due to Elijah's very rough attack. She ran a hand through her long brown hair.

"Elena, are you ok?" she sighed dramatically with relief.

"I'm fine, I'm with Damon – somewhere –" She looked around for signs but there wasn't any. It felt like they were in the middle of nowhere. She felt her heart skip a beat.

"Good –" There was a pause so silent it made Elena's toes curl. "Elena –"

"When will you be here?" she asked cutting him off, something felt wrong. She could feel it in the pit of her stomach.

Another silence. "I won't."

She felt her stomach clench, "What do you mean you won't?"

"After we fled Elijah we couldn't seem to get rid of them watching us. There's more than just him. I can't come to you now Elena it would be a death trap. They are watching our ever move, probably hoping I'll lead them to you."

"I need you here," she whimpered. She couldn't stand to be away from him, to not know if he'd survive living through the day.

"Damon will look after you," she could hear the sadness in his voice. "I have to stay to protect the town – specially your brother and Jenna."

Elena felt sick to the core. He was right, as always.

"I love you,"

"I love you too you know that Elena, that's why I'm staying."

"I understand," she murmured weakly as she watched Damon return from the convenience store with a couple of bags in his hand after paying. He'd brought large dark aviators for the trip into the desert and Elena had to resist at the urge to roll her eyes.

"I will speak to you soon."

"Yes –"

He was gone before she could say a proper goodbye. She slumped in defeat against Damon's old car her eyes cast down on the tarmac road.

"Is he ok?" Damon asked as he strolled towards her.

"Yes, but he's not coming." Damon didn't seem to look too bothered as he pulled out a fresh bottle of whisky and took a sip. A blissful grin came to his face showing his perfectly straight and white teeth before he turned his attention back on the sullen girl in front of him.

"I will look after you Elena," he said as if trying to convince her. Elena looked up into the beautiful face of the other Salvatore and she knew by the look in his eyes he wasn't lying. But one can never trust Damon Salvatore completely.

"So where you want to go? We've got the whole road in front of us." Damon seemed to be taking too much pleasure out of the situation as he rounded the car to the boot. She watched as he pulled out a case of human blood packed up by the hospital. He'd brought a cooler bag from the store and some ice.

"I don't care,"

"Las Vegas it is then."

"Damon."

"Come on Elena lighten up!" He grinned devilishly while raising one of his dark eyebrows. "I seem to remember the fun side of you in Atlanta."

"Damon – I'm really not in the mood," she murmured getting back in the car and slumping against her seat. A second later she had Damon sat next to her trying to put his cooler bag of blood down into the front foot well.

"Make sure you look after that, otherwise I might have to feed on you."

"You do that and I'll kill you."

"Sounds like a date."

She sighed in annoyance and turned the opposite way. Leaning her head against the window she watched as the landscape began to get drier and drier as they continued to travel south. However, it wasn't long until she'd fallen asleep herself, her dreams always with Stefan.

**TBC...**

So what do you think? To continue or not to continue? :)


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